Draft-gear.



H. T. KRAKAU.

DRAFT GEAR. APPLICATION FILED APR. 30, 1907.

Patented Dec.22, 1908.

4 SHEETB-SHEET 1.

WITNESSES INVENTOR H. T. KRAKAU,

DRAFT GEAR APPLm TIoN TILED APR. 30,1902.

' i. mum 21,, was;

lllmp lkw INVENTDH WITNESSES H. T. KRAKAU.

DRAFT GEAR.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 30.1907.

I Y IQ I \\\\\\\\\\:ma 1, I M 1% 83 x q 1 &-Y.{47//////. L a i r I WITNESES Patented Dec. 22, 1908.

4 HHEBTB-SHEET STATES" PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY r. train-tn; '1. CLEVELAND,- OHIO, ASSIGNOB TOTHE NATIONAL MALLEAB E OASTIXGSCOMPANY. or CLEVELAXDuOHIO, A CORPORATION-(OF OHIO.

DRAFT-GEAR.

To Gail/710771 it may concern:

Be it known that I, Hxnnr T. KRAKAU, of Cleveland.-Cuyal1oga county; Ohio, have in venteda new ahd.us'eful Draft-Gear, of which thefollowing 1s a full, clear. and exact description, reference being had'to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specication, in which.

F gure 1 1s a partial plan view of my draft 1'0 gear; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal central section thereof; partly in .elev. t'ionzjlig. 3 is a vertical section on the line Il Illl of Fig. 2; Fig. l is-a sectional view on a .1arg'er scale. showing apart of 'th'e de ice: ,Figs. 5 and 6 I areyertical sections on the lines and VI-Jl of Fig. 4., v

My invention provides which the coupler is capable of swinging laterallythrough a wide range and is connected to the. truck so as to be guided thereby .positively into proper position. The device can be ,used with success on passenger cars, and can also be applied to draft-gears in a manner which will adapt them for use not only ?5 with passenger cars. but also with much J greater elticiency t-han heretofore on freight car e uipments. The at vantages of such latera y-swinging draft gears are. that they relieve the cars from the. great strain to which they are subiected when provided 'fwith laterally-fixed draft-gears, and also remove strain from the wheels. axles. andtrack. and thus increase the durability of the "cars and etlect a very considerable economy in the power required to move the trains.

The drawings show the preferred embodiment of my invention'but it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the parts and their arrangement may be modif 40 fied in many ways and that some of the parts of the apparatus may be applied to use-without the others.

In the drawings. 2 represents a swinging frame. having a rearwardly extending beam 2', which is pivoted to the car frame at 3 and carries a draft-rigging 4 and coupler 5 in the manner described in prior patents issued to ,me, so that the coupler with the draft-rigging, will swing radially on the axis 3 as the car passes around curves. The coupler and the frame are supported by carry-irons 6, 7, and the frame has telescopic spring guidingconnections 8, extending from a pin 9 on the frame .to points 10 on the car-truck. The 5 platform buffer, which constitutes one of the Specification of Letters Patent. I

. Application filed April 30, 1907. Serial No. 371.042.

'third member of the device.

a draft gear in- Patented Dec. 22, 1.908.

front butler spring-case 12, which consti tutes the second member of the platformbufierand is fitted telescopicallyover a rear buffer spring-case 13, which constitutes the Springs 14 and 15 setin the spring-cases force the face of the butter forwardly and keep itin close contact with the butter of an adjoining car. The rear spring-case 13 has a curved and flanged end portion 18. whichtits on av correspondingly curved segment 19, whose curvature is such that its center is substantially coincident'withthe axis 3. p p The buffer is engaged with .the, couplershnnk in such manner as to permit an inde pendent relative longitudinal motion of these parts .to a limited extent. and so as to cause tllt ltl'tQ move laterally together. This engagement is made by pins or projections on one of these parts. fitting within longitudinally [slotted or elongnted sockets on the other part} and also by a pin orprojc-ction on one of the parts fitting an tin-slotted socket on the other part, back of the buffer and preferably as near the guiding segment as possible. The buffer being thus engaged at its rear and forward points with the coupler, constitutes in effect a floating member which has its rear bearing on a curved and extended surface at the end-sill of the car-frame and transmits the stresses of bufiing to the end sil in a straight line in every position in which it may be carried by the coupler. The s rains are thus distributed on the car-frame inn most advantageous manner. The buffer by hearing at its rearend against the end sill of the car-frame, instead of near the forward end of the buffer on theniront of platform, creates a minimum of friction on its bearing to be overcome in its lateral movement. 1

The engaging members of the buffer and coupler which I show in the drawing consist of ins or lugs 20 and'2 1 on the coupler-head tlllt buffer-shank fitting elongated sockets on the butler-shank and frame 2 respectively; and the rear engagement is constituted by a pin or projection 22 on the head 18, fitting in a socket '22 in the frame. thus equipped are brought into coupling en gagement the couplers engage one with the other and the buffing faces'll also engage,

When two cars angles'to the longitudinal axis of its own shank and to the shank of the coupler. So. long as the twobufiers are in contact, their shanks cannot get out of line with each other,

' each buffer engages its coupler and moves laterally therewith, the buffers. will serve to hold the couplers in line, and prevent them from buckling.

Within the scope of my invention as defined in the claims the apparatus may be modified in many ways, since What I claim is 1. A car havinga swinging frame carrying a draft-rigging and coupler, and a buffer mounted independently of the draft gear and adapted to swing radially relatively to a central point, the buffer being engagedwith the draft gear and adapted to movetherewith laterally.

A car having a swinging frame carrying a draft rigging and cou ler and a buffer mounted upon the car independently of the draft gear and engaged with said parts by a sliding engagement and means whereby the transverse member of the buffer is held at right angles to the longitudinal line of the draft gear.

3. A car having a swinging frame carrying a draft-rigging and coupler, and a floating buffer mounted upon the car independently of the draft-gear and having a shank fixed rigidly to the transverse member of the'buffer, saidbuffer and shank being adapted to. move laterally With the draft-gear.

4. A car having a swin ing frame carrying a draft-riggin and cou ler, and a floating buffer engage with said arts and adapted to move therewith laterall said bufier having a rearwardly-extending shank at its middle portion, and a spring therefor.

5. A car having a sWin ing frame carrying a draft-riggmg and coup er, and a floating buffer engaged by a sliding engagement with said parts, and adapted to move therewith laterally, and having also a non-sliding engagement at the rear of the spring portion of the buffer. I

d. A car having a swinging frame carrying a draft-rigging and coupler, and a floating buffer engaged with said parts and adapted to move therewith laterally, said bufier aving its spring back of its middle portion, and said frame having a guiding connection with the car-truck.

7. A car having a swinging frame carrying a draft riggin'g and coupler, and a floating. buffer engaged with said. parts and adapte to move therewith laterally, and means whereby the transverse member of the buffer is held at right angles to the longitudinal line of the draft gear.

8. A car having a swinging frame carrying a draft-rigging and cou ler, and a floating buffer engaged with sai arts'and ada ted to move therewith laterall y, said frame laving a guiding connection with the caiytruck. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my handj HARRY T. KRAKAU. Witnesses:

CHARLES E. Porn, HARRY E. ORR. 

